


Time of the Doctor

by Herminbean



Series: The Wrong Regeneration [4]
Category: Doctor Who, Doctor Who & Related Fandoms, Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Doctor Who Fusion, Dark Doctor (Doctor Who), Gen, Warnings May Change, what if
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-25
Updated: 2018-12-06
Packaged: 2019-08-29 05:47:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 10
Words: 4,657
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16738258
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Herminbean/pseuds/Herminbean
Summary: The Doctor has come so far, and now it is time to find answers





	1. Chapter 1

Once, there was a planet, much like any other, and unimportant. Many were drawn to this planet. There didn’t seem to be any reason, and yet here they found themselves. Daleks and Cybermen. Zygons and Oods. Creatures large and small, evil and gentle. They circled this planet, merely watching. None knew why they were there, and none dare question it. All they knew was that it was meant to be. That this is what was to happen. And none knew it more than the Doctor.

It had taken him many years to reach this point. Although sometimes it felt like no time at all. Large portions of his life seemed lost to him. Moments that connected one event to another were missing. No matter how hard back he looked, his life made no sense. For the longest time he chose to ignore this. Or, at the very least, his mind did. But now his mind was open, and he could deny it no longer. Something was very wrong with him. Something was very wrong with the Doctors time.

The story was still incomplete. He needed to get answers, and in order to get them, he had committed the gravest act of his life. He was certain he had committed it before, but somehow, this time it had felt so real, and so wrong. The Time Lords were gone. But hadn’t they always? Why did this time feel like such a massive change in the universe? Whatever had happened, it had brought him, and seemingly the rest of the universe, to circle this small planet.

This is the story of the Doctor, and how he died.


	2. Chapter 2

Hustle and bustle came from all sides as the Doctor strolled down the street. To his left he saw a vendor waving some sort of spikey fruit, shouting prices at the passers-by. He could hear the sound of laughter and gentle bickering as people haggled for prices. He smiled to himself. This was the reason he travelled the Universe. Moments like this. Well, this and about one hundred other reasons, but right now, THIS was the reason the Doctor travelled. 

He ran up excitedly to a vendor. They stopped their yelling when they saw him approach and gave him a friendly smile. The Doctor shouted over the many voices scattered around the market, hoping they understood what he meant. The vendor held up a finger, questioningly. The Doctor held up two fingers and nodded. The vendor gave him a thumbs up, and poured two cups of a steaming, foaming liquid. The Doctor grabbed them from the vendor and awkwardly slid a few notes to from his hand, hoping that constituted as payment. He turned around, a big smile and handed one of the cups to his best friend.

Donna took the cup apprehensively, but with her usual smile on her face. The Doctor grinned and assured her she would love it. He was, of course, right. She took a sip and screamed with delight as the brand-new taste burst forth on her tongue. The Doctor laughed as she took it all in and took a sip himself. The taste was familiar, but at this point most tastes were to him. That’s why he loved seeing his friends experience these things. IT filled him with joy to see the wonder on their face. And Donna was no exception.

He thought back on their time together. What a journey they had been on. Pompei, Agatha Christie, walking shadows. All these adventures with entire species safe and sound because of Donna Noble. So why, when he looked back on all the dangers they had encountered, did his mind constantly go to the Ood? To the last words they had said to him. 

_I think your song must end soon._


	3. Chapter 3

“Was travelling with you always so boring?”

The Doctor did his best to block out the voice of the Time Lord formally known as Donna. Her voice grated on him. It was full of arrogance and impatient. It was almost listening to a female version of himself, and the Doctor was never fond of hearing himself outside of his own head. He leant against the TARDIS doors looking at the planet below. He had managed to find a space amongst the thousands of other ships who were orbiting. Then again, his ship was only tiny, so it wasn’t too hard.

“What are we doing?” The grating voice piped up again. The Doctor wished it would shut up, but whatever was going on, he was certain she was important.

“Gathering information.” The Doctor snapped.

Donna strolled over and peered out of the doors. “Yep, definitely a planet. Need more information?”

Trenzalore. He had heard the name, of course. Theories that this was where his final resting place was. Or would be. It was all relative at this point. It almost felt like he had been here before, but he knew better than to visit his own grave. He couldn’t think of any reason to do so. And yet, he was drawn to this planet, just like everyone else. Was it possible that the Universe was influencing him? Telling him that he had to face his own demise? Then why was everyone else here? To see the show, no doubt. Many of them would be happy to see the Doctor fall.

Donnas face blocked Trenzalore from view. She had swung herself out of the TARDIS in front of the Doctor. “Scared?” She asked, a mocking smile on her lips.

The Doctor stomped back into the TARDIS. “Scared off what?” He growled, pressing buttons absent randomly.

Donna swung herself back into the TARDIS and closed the doors behind her. “Don’t get me wrong, can’t say I blame you. Been through it myself. Can’t say dying is any fun.”

Of course she knew about Trenzalore. At this point it seemed to be public knowledge, why wouldn’t she know? The Doctor ignored her and carried on pressing buttons.

Donna sighed deeply. “Look, I get it. Woo, scary destiny planet and all that, but we’ve got stuff to do here.”

“It’s shielded, we can’t get down there.”

Donna laughed. “Seriously, has your brain gotten rustier or something? Use the TARDIS mainframe to tap into the shields and inverse it. We can slip through no problem that way.”

The Doctor scowled at her. He hated to admit it, but that might actually work. All of his encounters with impossible situations had made him blind to the fact that sometimes there is an easy solution. He truly hated her at that point. Although, he wasn’t sure if he hated her for thinking of it before him or because that meant there was no excuse to not go down now. Was she that determined to see him dead?

The Doctor put in the details, and sure enough the TARDIS hummed gently as it sorted through the data. The column grinded and the TARDIS groaned, jolting to life.

“Well then,” Donna smirked at the Doctor. “Geronimo.”


	4. Chapter 4

_Every song must end._

The Doctor took a bite from the spikey fruit he had somehow ended up with during his stroll through the market. Did he pay for it? He was certain if he hadn’t, somebody would let him know. It was hard for him to stay focused as the Oods words took over his thoughts. Was it a threat? A warning? Were they talking about River Song? He had encountered her in the library, and there was no doubt that is where she ended. Why would they warn him about that?

The thought loomed over him. Something big was coming, he could feel it. Things had gone too well for too long. Well for his standards anyway. It felt like the calm before the storm. The Doctor had been through many storms throughout his lives, and they almost always took something from him. Friends, family, parts of himself. What would the universe take from him next?

The Doctor bumped into a young lady, knocking his fruit from his hand. He apologized and bent to pick it up. Dirty. The Doctor shrugged. Nothing was perfect. He took another bite and savoured the taste. A smile spread across his face. Maybe a storm was coming. Maybe he would lose something soon. But right now, he was here. He was happy. He looked at the fruit. Even something which seemed ruined could still taste so sweet. Why focus on what might come to pass when he was here and happy with his best friend. 

It was at that point he realised he wasn’t with his best friend. The Doctor spun around, searching for any sign of Donna. He sighed. What was it with her and wondering off? Must be a human thing.


	5. Chapter 5

The TARDIS wheezed into existence among the snow. The doors creaked open and the Doctor peeked his head out. Was this really Trenzalore? It looked so…ordinary. The Doctor had always imagined himself falling in a more dramatic place. If the name wasn’t attached to this place, the Doctor might have found it delightful. He took a tentative step out and looked around. 

“Any boggled eyed monsters out there who spit acid?”

The Time Lord formally known as Donna stuck her head out of the TARDIS. She took in the small village with a look of disappointment.

“Ah, well, this is much more exciting than looking at it from afar, isn’t it?” She said sarcastically.

The Doctor rolled his eyes and walked towards the centre of the small village. He could only assume Donna was following, although quite honestly, he didn’t care at this point. He spotted two locals heading towards him. 

“Excuse me,” He called to them. “I was wondering if you could help me?”

The two strangers gave him a warm smile. The lady spoke up first. “Hello kind sir. You must be frozen solid.”

The Doctor had barely acknowledged the cold, but now she mentioned it, he probably should have dressed for the snow. It didn’t seem important given everything that was going on, but now he felt a shiver run down his spine.

“No no, I’m fine thank you. I’m looking for…” The Doctor stopped mid-sentence. Something hit him like a tonne of bricks.

The two strangers exchanged confused glances. “Sir, are you OK?” The man asked.

“Sorry about him. He’s got senile old man syndrome.” Donna piped up, joining the Doctors side. “It’s especially prevalent with senile old men. I believe my senile old friend here wanted to ask you if you had seen anything out of the ordinary?”

The lady rubbed her chin. “Well, there is the clock tower. Always seems to be in disrepair, no matter who we send. I say it’s just them being lazy though. How hard is it to patch a crack?”

“Thank you. Much appreciated.” Donna took the Doctor by the arm. “Come along, grandpa.”

The Doctor had barely registered what the lady had said. He was mulling over the thought still swirling in his head. Something was wrong again.

“What is going on with you?” Donna hissed at him. “As much as I like to see you baffled, being friendly to that old bag made my skin crawl.”

The Doctor looked over to Donna. “I said I was fine.”

Donna stared at him, waiting for more. It didn’t come. “And?”

“I’m not fine. I’m cold.”

Donna raised and eyebrow sceptically. “Aaaand…you really don’t like being cold?”

The Doctor thought deeply. “I lied.”

“Ooh, you feeling bad about lying? Newsflash, you lie all the time. It’s kind of your thing”

“I know, but this time it felt…” The Doctor searched for the word. “…wrong.”

Donna studied the Doctors face. Her face was serious for a change. “Well, since you want to start telling the truth, how about answering me something?”

The Doctor snapped back to reality. “Huh?”

Donna looked to the ground, kicking snow with her feet. “Why do you hate me, Doctor?”

He was taken aback by that. Was she seriously asking why he hated someone who treated all life with such contempt? He glared at her.

“Did you forget Wilf?”

Donna raised her hand in exasperation. “Again with the old man. Listen, I’m sorry you think I did something wrong. But be honest, you’re friends with people who have actually killed a lot more people than I have.”

She had a point. His relationship with the Master was a complicated one, but he could never say he hated him. In fact he had always admired him to a degree. And yet with Donna he felt this undeniable hatred.

“You are not Donna.” The Doctor searched for the thoughts. “In order for you to be here, my best friend had to die.”

Donna shrugged. “You got a point there I suppose. But how many Doctors had to “die” in order for you to be here? I’m sure they weren’t all willing to leave.”

The Doctor hated it when she made good points. “Well, I’m not overly fond off myself either.”

“That’s something we have in common.” Donna joked.

The Doctor felt a smirk appear on his lips for a second, but he quickly suppressed it. If Donna had noticed, she kept it to herself.

“You wanna know why I think you hate me?”

“Oh, go on. This should be good.”

“Because I’m a reminder of your failure.”

Another good point. The Doctor was getting pretty sick of this self-reflection. He looked down and noticed their arms were still linked. He pulled himself free and rushed to the clock tower.

“Well, I plan to fix that.”


	6. Chapter 6

The Doctor peered into yet another doorway. He was almost certain there was nothing dangerous on this planet, but he had always lived by the rule that the places that seemed the least dangerous were probably the most. Still, he was certain that Donna could take care of herself. She never failed to surprise him. 

He imagined what his life would be like without his best friend. Would he even have a life? She had saved his life more times than he could count. After thinking about it for more than a second, the Doctor decided the thought was too depressing to waste time on. The point is they had met, and every day since then he had a blast. There was no awkwardness when it came to her. He felt like he truly be himself with her. Being the handsome adventurer did tend to invite some unwanted attention. As he had told her all those years ago, he just wanted a mate.

The Doctor laughed to himself when he thought back to her reaction to that. It was that moment that he would have no problems with Donna. It was clear she just wanted the same thing. 

The first time Donna had been separated from the Doctor, he had freaked out. By this time, however, it almost felt strange when they didn’t get separated. Still, she had been gone a while, and it was best they get on their way. He would find her, and off they would fly.

The Doctor and Donna in the TARDIS. The way it should be.


	7. Chapter 7

The crack. Of course, it would be the crack. Just the thing the Doctor needed. 

The Doctor pulled out his Sonic and buzzed it at the crack, taking readings to ensure it was ready. He was breaking every rule he ever lived by, but it was important.

“What’s with the shoddy maintenance?” Donna asked, looking at the crack.

“It’s not a crack in the wall.” The Doctor explained. “It’s a crack in the fabric of time itself.”

Donna rolled her eyes. “Of course it’s a magical crack. What else would it be with you?”

The Doctor checked his Sonic. “It worked. These readings are very bad.” He smiled to himself.

Donna raised an eyebrow. “You trying to be quirky again? Why is “bad” good?”

The Doctor spun to her excitedly. “The crack is something special. It’s not just a crack in time. It’s a crack in all time. Every universe. This goes further than just us, it reaches out to other places. Something is wrong, that much is clear. And every time something goes wrong, this barrier becomes weaker.”

Donna walked up to the crack and put a hand on it. “Is that why…?” She started.

The Doctors face fell. “That’s why I used the Moment.” He finished for her. “Whatever was influencing us, it was clear it was trying to make us save Gallifrey. I needed a change so big it would break down the wall. I had to.” The Doctor wasn’t sure if he was justifying it to Donna or to himself. Since Donna didn’t like the Time Lords, the answer seemed pretty clear.

Donna pulled her hand back from the crack suddenly. She looked at her hand, scared.

“Doctor, you’re destroying this universe. The walls, if they fall…”

“The it won’t be good, I’m aware. But I need to talk to her.”

Donna looked at the Doctor. “Who?”

Suddenly the crack began to glow. It got brighter and brighter as the walls crumbled. Donna scurried back in panic, cowering behind the Doctor. That put a smile on his face, despite knowing he had started a chain reaction that will eventually destroy everything in their universe. The glowing crack expanded bit by bit. It seemed to engulf the entire wall. Slowly, a humming came from it. It grew louder and louder. It became apparent that the hum wasn’t a hum. It was a groan. A familiar groan. From the light, a blue box morphed into view. It flickered, struggling to find form. Finally, it was here. The blue box the Doctor had waited for. It was so similar to his, but the Doctor could tell it wasn’t. It was all in the small details really. Nice attempt, he thought, but not quite right.

The doors flung open, and out strode a blonde woman. She saw the Doctor right away and smiled.

“Hello Doctor.”

The Doctor smiled back. “Hello Rose, glad you recognised me.”


	8. Chapter 8

The Doctor prodded the beetle with indifference. It turned out that Donna had got herself in a little bit of trouble, but as usual, had got herself out of it as well. The time beetle was an interesting anomaly. The Doctor had explained to Donna that it latched itself onto its victims and changed an aspect of their past in tiny ways. As far as the trickster brigade went, it could have been worse. In all honesty, the Doctor wasn’t interested in it at all. Once the connection was broken, the beetle perished. Problem solved. He was far more interested in what happened in Donnas parallel world.

She had mentioned meeting a woman. A blonde woman who had helped her. She gave a grave warning. The stars were going out. In every universe. The stars were disappearing. This could be ignored if it weren’t for her final words to Donna.

_Bad Wolf._

And just like that, the Doctor ran. He ran and ran to save reality itself. And the beetle lay, forgotten. That was the Doctors mistake.


	9. Chapter 9

“…and this beetle, it latched itself onto Donna, and it…”

Rose had been explaining what had happened in Donna’s universe to the Doctor. The Doctor sat and listened, his face motionless. He had ignored the time beetle when he first encountered it. Brushed it off as a inconsequential thing in the grand scheme of things. It would appear he should have taken its power more seriously.

“…changes a part of your past, yes I see.” The Doctor finished. 

“You’re saying that one of these things might be affecting you, Doctor?” Donna piped up.

Rose raised an eyebrow at Donna. “It all happened to you. Don’t you remember?”

“It happened to human Donna.” Donna snorted.

Rose looked at the Doctor, confused. He waved a dismissive hand. “Long story. I needed to hear it from you, Rose. You’re the only one who knows what happened then. You know how to stop this.”

Rose looked away. The Doctor struggled to read her face, but he was certain he saw some sorrow cross it. “We…we went back to the moment that changed, and we changed it back.”

Donna rolled her eyes. “You say it like it’s that easy. How do you change it back?”

“Wrong question.” The Doctor stroked his chin. “How do we know what moment was changed?”

He paced up and down, looking back over his life. So many moments. Which one was wrong? He closed his eyes, and concentrated. At some point, his life seemed to go wrong. Well, many moments could have caused that. He had to think. Find the moment. The moment everything changed.

That hand. It was that damn hand. He was so sure he could succeed in putting off his regeneration. It hadn’t worked. And that had felt more wrong than anything in his life. And everything since then had felt wrong too. He should have succeeded. He shouldn’t have changed. The Doctor was sure of it.

His eyes shot open to see Rose and Donna looking at him.

“I know what I have to do. Donna, give me your Vortex Manipulator.”

Donna looked like she was about to protest, but the look on the Doctors face silenced her. He wasn’t messing around this time. She unclasped the manipulator and handed it to the Doctor. He zapped it with his Sonic, amplifying its abilities. 

“Right then.” The Doctor waved stiffly. “Bye.”

“Doctor.” Rose jumped in. “We’ll come with you.”

“We will?” Donna raised an eyebrow at Rose.

“Yes, we will.” Rose snapped.

The Doctor shook his head. “I need to go alone. Where I’m about to go, not only am I there, but so are you two. It’s too dangerous for us all to go.”

Rose looked like she wanted to say something, but she simply nodded her head. Donna was looking at the Doctor with an odd look.

“Doctor.” She said. “If you do this, what happens to me?”

The Doctor smiled at her. “If I do things right. It will save you.”

And with that, the Doctor tapped the Vortex Manipulator and disappeared.


	10. Chapter 10

The Doctor jolted as he landed at his destination. He had always hated Vortex Manipulators. Cheap and nasty time travel. Still, it seemed to have gotten him to the right place. Earth. And judging from all the planets in the sky, the right time as well. Breaking down the walls of the Universe had made this leap even easier. Fortunately for him, otherwise reaching this place in time would be impossible. 

The Doctor checked the readout on the Manipulator. This should be the exact right spot as well. All he had to do was wait. And fortunately, he didn’t have to wait long. A wheezing surrounded him, and the TARDIS materialized in front of his eyes.

The Doctor darted behind the TARDIS as the doors creaked open, and out stumbled his past self, followed by Donna.

“Like a ghost town.” Donna said, looking around. It was so good to hear her normal, human voice again.

“Sarah Jane said they were taking the people. What for?” His younger self turned on Donna. “Think, Donna. When you met Rose in that parallel world, what did she say?”

“Just, the darkness is coming.”

“Anything else?”

The Doctor remembered this moment well. He knew what was coming. He needed to get inside his old TARDIS, and he needed the perfect distraction. Fortunately, one was about to happen.

“Why don't you ask her yourself?” Donna said with a smile.

The younger Doctor looked confused, and then he saw her. Rose Tyler. The Doctor wanted to stop himself from running to her. But he had to stay quiet. He had to let this part play out.

His younger self took of running. The Doctor marvelled at just how fast he was. He really needed to run more often, he’d been slacking off. His younger self rand and ran. And then, that damn Dalek.

As soon as the bolt connected with his younger self, Donna took off after him. This was his chance. The Doctor snuck around to the doors. He glanced over at the panic occurring in the streets. Jack had shown up and they were all gathered around his past self. Perfect.

The Doctor swung the TARDIS doors open and slipped inside. There stood his old console, humming away to itself as it always did. The Doctor took a second to mentally criticise its dirty look and dashed off down the corridor. He peered into the console room from a safe distance.

The TARDIS doors burst open, and his old team staggered in, carrying his younger body. This was it. It was going to happen.

The Doctor had mulled over what went wrong in his mind many times. Why didn’t siphoning off his energy work? He came to conclusion, he just needed a little help. A little extra regeneration energy should do the trick.

“What, what do we do?. There must be some medicine or something.”

“Just step back. Rose, do as I say, and get back. He's dying and you know what happens next.”

“What do you mean?”

The Doctor looked on as his old self held up his hand. It began to glow. The Doctor closed his eyes and concentrated. His own hand began to glow too.

“I came all this way.”

“What do you mean, what happens next? “

“It’s starting.”

The thing about regeneration is, even if a Time Lord is on their last regeneration, there is still a little bit of excess regeneration energy left. Not enough for a full blown heal, but enough to keep them going. It’s how a Time Lord lives so long, even when on their final regeneration. It keeps them alive.

“Here we go. Good luck, Doctor.”

And the Doctor figured, he wasn’t going to get any good use from his excess energy.

“Will someone please tell me what is going on?”

“When he's dying, his…his body, it repairs itself. It changes. But you can't!”

But there was someone who could use that energy.

“I’m sorry, it's too late. I'm regenerating.”

The console room burst with light. Everyone shielded their eyes as the younger Doctor burst with energy. The Doctor concentrated hard. He forced his final regeneration energy out of his body. As his younger self aimed his regeneration energy to his spare hand, the Doctor pushed his energy into his younger self. More and more he pushed. This had to work. It was his last chance. He felt himself get weaker as the energy keeping him alive left him. His eyes grew heavier and he struggled to keep the power flowing. He didn’t stop though. He had to use it all. 

Finally, his younger self snapped back. His face. It was the same face. The dashing young man remained. He crooked his head.

“Now then.” He quipped. “Where were we.”

As the younger Doctor darted off on his adventure, the old man staggered down the corridor. He propped himself up against the wall and slid down as he felt the last of his life leaving him. He smiled to himself, thinking of the young Doctor back there. Running around, putting everything right with his genius.

“Run, you clever boy.” He whispered to himself. “And be the Doctor.”

And then everything went white.

# . . .

The Doctors eyes shot open. A squeaking from behind was heard and the Doctor spun around. There it was. The Time Beetle. It was squirming in pain as the food source was cut off. Finally, with one last shudder, it lay still. The Doctor scanned the room. Several hooded figures were taking a few anxious steps back. They seemed. Scared. They should be.

The Doctor straightened up. “Right then.” She patted down her long jacket, turned on the hooded figures and whipped out her Sonic. “Who wants to explain first?”


End file.
